The penultimate episode of Star Trek: Lower Decks [“Fissure Quest“] featured several Star Trek legacy actors reprising their roles. One in particular had extra duty with Star Trek: Voyager’s Garrett Wang tasked to voice several different Harry Kims from the multiverse. The episode ended on a cliffhanger, with the series finale arriving this week. TrekMovie had a chance to talk to Wang about returning to Star Trek for the animated Harry Kims as well as his almost return to live-action in Star Trek: Picard.
If you want to listen to the interview, check out the All Access Star Trek podcast.
Was getting the call for Lower Decks something you expected, and were you wondering why it took so long?
Yes, and yes. Since the first season I was absolutely over the over the moon that a comedic Trek had come out, because I had been preaching that and thinking about that ever since the end of Voyager; that there needs to be a comedic Star Trek. And when it came out with the first season, I was so excited. And then seeing Tom Paris I thought was great. Season 2 went by, and then season 3 and still no call. And then we see Tom Paris again a second time, but as Nick Locarno, so Robbie [Duncan McNeill]’s on there twice. That’s when I messaged Mike McMahon, the showrunner, and I said, “It’s awesome that you guys are paying some respect to Voyager by having Tom Paris, but please don’t forget about Harry.” And he responded back saying, “Hey, man, don’t you worry. We talk about Harry in the writer’s room daily.” And then I knew they’re trying to come up with something. So at that point, I didn’t worry any longer, and I was expecting it, and when they finally gave me the call, I was more than ecstatic that it was actually going to be a go.
Sounds like you were familiar enough with the show so that you didn’t need any briefing to prepare…
No, I didn’t need a briefing at all. I’m a science fiction fan, first and foremost, I think ten percent of the series regulars on Star Trek shows are actually sci fi fans. The other ninety percent are actors doing a job. So I’m very proud to say that I’m part of that ten percent, so I kind of keep my finger on the pulse of all Trek as it moves on, for sure.
But there is something different about Lower Decks and how it deals with characters. Did you talk to anyone before hand to prepare?
Yeah. Before I recorded the session I reached out to both Tawny [Newsome] and Eugene [Cordero]… and I said, “Any advice?” Both of them were, like, “Bigger, faster.” It’s animation, and especially Lower Decks, there’s no time to draaaaaaw out your sentences or [adopts Shatner voice] Speak… like… Kirk… does. You can’t have those pauses in there, right? And then I talked to Robbie about it and he said, “One thing is when I thought I was big enough, I was not big enough.” Because during his session, they kept saying, “Bigger, Robbie, come on, bring it up. Bigger, bigger!” So he had to push himself, and he thought it was too big. So when I heard that from him, I knew there’s no reins on this horse.
Garrett Wang as the Harry Kims in Star Trek: Lower Decks (Paramount+)
So for your lieutenant Kim was very broad, he even got to do a villain laugh. Did you get any background as to what was driving him to be so angry?
They didn’t. He’s angry because he sees the treatment of all the other Harrys, that they have not been promoted. He can’t believe that they haven’t been promoted. So he’s pissed off for them, really. But in terms of backstory or anything like that, no, they didn’t… So for him or [the other Harrys]… there was none of that, they just gave me the script and said, “Okay, here it is.”
How did they differentiate the different Harrys, were they like Harry One, Harry Two, etc?
They had descriptive names of exactly who they were. Like, “Two-Pip Kim,” “Tall Socks Kim” or “Drive Uniform Kim.” So it was not with numbers it was actually with some type of adjective… Because if it was One, Two, Three I would be so confused. I needed something to help anchor me.
But Kim Prime’s nowhere in there, right?
No, correct.
Well, they played on the joke of Kim not being promoted. But technically Kim Kim, has not yet been promoted.
Correct.
So, when you got the script, were you like, “But you still haven’t promoted me, have you?”
I was so overjoyed just to have the gig, I didn’t even give a poop about “Hey, but what about me? What about the Prime Kim?” You’re right. I should have asked. Now that you say that, I’m going to talk to Mike. I am going to send a message to to him. [laughs]
When you were recording, did you have a chance to improvise at all?
Yes! Oh, my god. We could never improvise on regular Trek. It’s to the letter. You do not change a darn thing. If you wanted to change one word you would have to call and get authorization and often times that was denied. So, the chance to be able to improvise, oh my gosh yes! I was able to throw some stuff in there… They said, “Okay, we’ve done the lines already as scripted. Now just throw in some other random lines that you think Harry would say.” So I did, and I’m sure some of that made it in there too… It’s been so long since the recording session, I don’t remember what exactly made it in, but it’s during the time when a bunch of Kims are speaking.
Anything you can tease for the Kims for the finale?
No [laughs]. Nothing. Sorry.
Garrett Wang as one of the Harry Kims in Star Trek: Lower Decks (Paramount+)
There was a bit of drama about you almost appearing in the third season of Picard, and I have talked to [showrunner] Terry Matalas a bit about that…
Yeah, I don’t know what you learned from him, but I’m curious.
As I understand it, the original plan was that Captain Kim was going to be kind of like Admiral Shelby [Elizabeth Deneny], that was going to be you.
Correct.
So, I was wondering how far down the road did they go with you on that?
It went all the way to my manager saying, “You’ve been cast.” It was originally a three episode arc, which then changed to two, then then changed to one. But I was told by my manager that I needed to be in the LA area in January for a fitting for Picard. So it was there. It had progressed fairly far actually having Harry on that show, pretty darn far. The script was written. Harry’s name was in there… Jeri Ryan said to me, “It’s so funny because we got sent a script, and Harry was in there, and all sudden, the revisions, Harry wasn’t in there.” I was like, “Oh, wow.” So, it went pretty darn far. And I’ll be perfectly honest, being a sci-fi fan, I was depressed for months after that when it didn’t happen. I was literally crying into my own sleeve. [laughs]
Did you ever get any indications from Prodigy?
No, and they are part of this too… a player. And that’s what makes me so angry.
They actually feel they weren’t part of it. They claim they took no part in this…
Well, that may be, but I wish I would get a call from Prodigy to work on that show. I would love to.
You have been pretty involved in the Voyager documentary To The Journey and you were at the first screening last month. Was there anything, maybe some behind the scenes drama, that you learned through this experience?
No, I think I knew pretty much everything. Although, it’s funny because I had a conversation – there’s a bit of the documentary where you see myself Lolita Fatjo and Bryan Fuller, the writer and I learned something from him while we were doing that. We were just standing around talking, and he said, “I had a recurring character for you on Pushing Daisies and we tried to get a hold of you and couldn’t find you.” And it’s true. I left Hollywood. I just quit, basically, I took a long vacation for 14 years from 2005 to 2019 so that was news to me. Even though it’s not a Trek, I was like, “What! I could have done that?! Because I love that show. It’s a great show
So do you think this is your last Star Trek, and if so how do you feel about that?
If it is my last Star Trek, I’ll be very sad. I would love to be able to reappear in something else. At one point I was espousing the idea that there should be a show with Harry Kim and Jake Sisko, basically as Section 31 agents. And then they actually threw that into the comics. So in the Trek comic book world, Harry Kim is a Section 31 agent. I’m like, what the heck? Took my idea and you threw it in the comic, you didn’t put it in live action, but that’s fine.
They are making the Starfleet Academy show with your old co-star Robert Picardo. So, what’s your pitch for 32nd century Hologram Kim?
Just that Harry was so integral to the Voyager crew that he knows more than anyone else, and so that’s why he needs to be Admiral Kim hologram, or something like that, 800 years from now. That’s my pitch. [laughs].
The fifth and final season of Lower Decks debuted on Thursday, October 24 on Paramount+ in the U.S. and internationally. New episodes of the 10-episode-long season will drop every Thursday on the service leading up to the series finale on Thursday, December 19.
Keep up with news about the Star Trek Universe at TrekMovie.com.
NOTE: Interview has been edited for brevity and clarity.
Wang was Voyager’s weakest actor, and Harry its weakest character. So while I can empathize with his frustration at having been written out of Picard, I think he should just be happy to have been brought into Lower Decks. There’s a reason this guy doesn’t get a lot of work–he’s just not a strong actor. Even in the best Harry episodes, he’s not very good at conveying emotions without looking like he’s trying too hard. Harry was very nearly written out after three seasons of Voyager, and it’s a shame he wasn’t, because he brought nothing to the show. And he’d have been very out of place on Picard, surrounded by actors and characters who were far more entertaining to watch.
He and RDM were the weakest in the ensemble, but it was a pretty strong cast, and they still had their moments. I’ll give him credit for playing anger and desperation well in The Chute and The Killing Game. I wasn’t quite as convinced when he was playing anything other than sullen in Timeless, but that performance resonated with a lot of people.
He’s very enthusiastic these days and sometimes it comes across a bit oddly. But I’m happy he’s gotten a spotlight again.
I do hope the LD series finale is mostly about our main heroes. I’ve no doubt it will be, but as fun as the setup was, it can’t all be that now.
Yes, they absolutely made the right call in featuring Shelby, rather than Harry Kim. The latter’s character was not *that* compelling, and he had nothing to do with the TNG characters. Shelby, despite featuring in only two episodes, was much more important to TNG.
I get that Garrett Wang wants to advocate for his character and his own career, but there are times in which actors ought not be influencing the writers’ room, and this sure sounds like one of them.
You’re right on all counts.
IMO the writers of Nu-Trek tarnish the legacy of the veteran actors, now wouldn’t it be something if they could improve on them! I remember hating voyager thinking it was such a weak show. I have all 7 seasons on DVD I will do a re-watch in 2025 because I think I only ever caught bits of it once, I am ambivalent about Harry Kim / Garret Wang but the writers could have somehow improved him, that would have been novel
you are only as good as your material and Voy was not strong on character development, only high concept SF plots.
That is certainly true. But even when he was given good material, which he occasionally was, he typically delivered a bland performance.
There’s a silver lining to have been written out of Picard: Admiral Shelby probably died… so Kim gets to live, i.e. there’s still a possibility for Wang to reprise his role. (Which I would welcome.)
Good point!
shame shelby went out like that.
Poor Garrett, geez. I hope he gets to pop up again in live action eventually.
I would’ve loved to have seen Garret return in Picard too, so it’s disappointing.
And having him back as a captain would’ve finally ended this ridiculous promotion issue although the character has been regularly promoted in every beta canon story out there for the last 20 years and was literally a captain in the future in Endgame; so it’s always been much ado about nothing. He’s never stayed an ensign in any story post-Voyager. I just wanted to see the character back because he’s one of my favorites.
But I have a feeling there will be more stories or shows taking place in the 25th century and I don’t just mean a possible Legacy show just in general.
Captain Kim appearing only to be immediately killed by his own crew probably wouldn’t have done much to cut down on the Harry Kim jokes, to be fair…
They were rewriting stuff all the time so we don’t really know that would’ve been his fate. Ro for example lived in one draft and she was supposed to have a much bigger part with Tuvok.
And Shelby was just in a cameo role. They wanted Kim to have a much bigger part.
I wish they hadn’t killed off Ro (or, in fairness, hinted so strongly she’s been killed); she’s one TNG character, maybe along with Barclay and O’Brien, that might have been worth using again.
The character’s failure to show up on DS9 was a missed opportunity. DS9 should have had an arc about resentments by the Bajoran militia — most of whom were in the resistance, or at least stayed on Bajor during the occupation — towards diaspora Bajorans like Ro or Sito Jaxa, who emigrated and enjoyed a cushier life.
This arc would also have tied in with the real-world allegory of the Palestine situation, since there are ample numbers of diaspora Palestinians.
Yeah I wish she lived as well.
And of course they wanted her to star in DS9 (and then Voyager) but she turned them both down.
And who knows, maybe we could’ve gotten stories like that if she took the role but then they created Kira and turned her into a full resistance fighter and far from Starfleet as you can get
ms forbes didn’t want to join DS9 at the time so it was not their fault that they had to create kira instead.
actually it worked out in the end.
There is indeed a Great Need.
I’ve been enjoying Wang (and McNeil) on the Delta Flyers podcast, but he does come off as a little entitled and resentful sometimes when it comes to opportunities for Star Trek actors. He says he wanted to direct on Voyager, and that he wanted to contribute storylines, but was repeatedly denied and dismissed. The way he tells it’s like he was passed over deliberately in favor of others, but it’s clear that he just didn’t make enough of an effort at the time and/or didn’t impress the right people (which is nothing to be embarrassed by!).
And now it’s hard to hear him talk about the phone calls he thinks he’s owed to participate more in modern Trek. I get where he’s coming from, as he’s more involved in the convention scene and the Trek fandom than his co-stars are, it’s just heartbreaking that he thinks that alone entitles him to more.
I always liked Harry Kim and wanted more from him on Voyager, and LOVED his turn on last week’s Lower Decks (he should get more voice work). I also always thought that Tom Paris was the worst, so it’s been nice to have those expectations confounded. Wang’s energy and commitment is unmissable. He’s clearly the glue that holds their podcast together, but his memories are a little self-serving sometimes, Meanwhile, McNeil has developed a very mature and thoughtful take on Voyager and his character, and offers a lot of behind the scenes insight as a TV director. He’s also really good about critiquing the franchise when it needs it, including how Trek often fails to to live up to its feminist ideals. I’ve really turned around on him, not as much on Tom Paris, but still…
A very refreshing listen, and I love that the 90s-00s Trek actors are becoming more involved and visible again these last few years (EVERYONE GO BUY NANA VISITOR’S INCREDIBLE BOOK!), but I do roll my eyes at “Gawa” (as Terry Farrell adorably calls him) sometimes.
<i>He says he wanted to direct on Voyager, and that he wanted to contribute storylines, but was repeatedly denied and dismissed. </i>
His insistence that what we really need is More Comedy Trek suggests that his vision for the franchise is not all he thinks it’s cracked up to be — and that there were very sound reasons for dismissing his “suggestions.”
good thing harry was not in ‘picard’ s3 as they would have killed him as they did shelby.
I think it’s unfortunate that so many of the various Star Trek series’ “B” characters have such a chip on their shoulders about not being featured more, or not having their characters live on or become the center of the story through the years. You were cast as a B character – important, certainly, but not the main characters of the series. Whether it’s George Takei pushing the Captain Sulu thing or Michael Dorn pushing a Worf centered series or Garret Wang complaining that Harry Kim hasn’t gotten his due, it all feels like sour grapes. You had a role in one of the longest running television franchises. It provided you exposure, an income and some level of continuing fame, even if to a small group of the public. Be happy.
Earlier in my career I worked with one of the B level character actors from Cheers. He was certainly known to the public and embraced for his part of the series, but he always had a chip on his shoulder about not being more than he was. It was off putting and seemed like he wasn’t grateful or satisfied.
I’m glad that Kim is getting some recognition, and Wang should be happy about that. But feeling like you’ve been wronged because your minor character hasn’t gotten more of the limelight feels petty.
I would not describe Worf as a “minor character.”
Fair, but I would still describe him as a “B” level character. In TNG, Picard/Riker were the leads. However, I will grant you that as the series went on, each character was elevated from their original role and it became more of an ensemble. Still, I would never classify Worf as an A level main character. IMO, of course.
I had no issue with Garrett and RDM on Voyager. Honestly I felt that the two of them together showed a real friendship that clearly extended beyond the show. I’ve rewatched Voyager from start to finish a number of times and I think it has aged better than TNG. Remember as well that they were doing about 26 episodes per season after season 1. No one does that today with a show. That is a lot of episodes to write and produce. You are going to have some stories that are subpar along the way, but that isn’t the actors fault. Like Garrett said, they had to say exactly what was in the script.
Glad Garrett got a chance to be on Lower Decks. Would have been cool to see him as captain of the Rhode Island in Picard (like he was captain in the Voyager finale).
I’m a vendor at STLV and other events.
GW usually has a t-shirt booth behind us.
He routinely poses for selfies and signs autographs for free.
I’d be a bit bitter about my fellow cast members whose careers continued on.
The few times I spoke to him? He’s a great guy.
I won’t comment on his talent or supposed lack of it.
The writers didn’t give him much to do.
After Jeri Ryan came aboard in S4, most of the supporting cast saw their plotlines thin out.
Loved Kim in Voyager, there I said it. He felt very easy to connect to as a younger guy, nerdy and bright-eyed. Bummer he wasn’t in Picard, I can fully understand his disappointment – I would have loved that so much.
It’s really ridiculous that harry kim was never promoted during the voyager series at least made lieutenant and tom be upgraded to lieutenant commander.
There was a comment below saying that he was the weakest actor on star trek voyager and his character was the weakest character are you kidding me!
Robert Beltran, was the absolute most useless character on star trek voyager his acting range was angry or angrier or yelling at the captain or screaming at somebody else he had 0 range and he was the worst ****** first officer I have ever seen on television or in movies!